Helen Cheyne born Kintore 1886 ** birthday bumped post **

[imlincs]

Hello Anne

Thank you for looking.

I live next to an old graveyard where many of the 19thC stones are virtually illegible so I certainly recognise the problem.

When I come up next year I'll visit Auchterless and look amongst the gravestones. I'm sure that just visiting in the knowledge that it's part of my history will be quite evocative even if the precise stone is no longer traceable. My next visit will certainly be more positive than my last when I was basically running around Aberdeenshire like a headless chicken. Now, thanks to all the help I've had, I have quite a full picture back to 1840.

My next two plans are

1) to see if I can find out anything more definite about James Cheyne. I'm going to post on the James Cheyne thread on TS http://talkingscot.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12458 a summary of what I have so far and I have also sent details to Jim Cheyne in Arizona http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cheyne/p1648.htm who seems to be taking an interest in this branch of Cheynes

2) to try and identify with more certainty the people and location of the group photograph that includes Aunt Maggie. I've joined ANEFHS (which I should probably have done a year ago but how little I knew then!). I thought I might also post the photo on the genealogy section of the Grampian Life site to try and widen my net. What do you think?

Now I'm off to France for a bit of a break.

Regards,

Ian
+++

[SarahND]

Now I'm off to France for a bit of a break.

Hi Ian,
I hope the area of France where you are going is not too wet! It has been raining quite a bit (everywhere except where we need it-- our spring has gone dry!)

Cheers,
Sarah

[imlincs]

Paris 3 days, Perpignan 4 days, back to Paris 3 days and home! Hoping to eat lots of cepes, lactaires and russules.

Regards,

Ian
+++

[AndrewP]

Paris 3 days, Perpignan 4 days, back to Paris 3 days and home! Hoping to eat lots of cepes, lactaires and russules.

There are always les glaces et sorbets, for which I can recommend Maison Berthillon, 29-31 rue saint Louis en l'ile, 75004 Paris; a very short walk from Notre Dame; as recommeded by CatrionaL who took me there when I was in that neck of the woods a couple of years back.

http://www.berthillon.fr/

All the best,

AndrewP

[SarahND]

We're just a short drive from Perpignan and there are many good restaurants in the old town. Offhand, I can't think of any specializing in champignons-- we usually go hunting for our own-- but I'm sure you'll find something tasty!

Nice wine in this area too, if I do say so myself



Sarah

[imlincs]

Hello Susan

After the elation of solving the mysteries of my grandmother's immediate family, I've been continuing to work on the Simpson family and wondered whether you could help me follow up your post of Oct 23rd

Not been able to pinpoint William in 1841 yet, but the rest of his family are staying as lodgers with farmer William Johnston 35 at New Mill, Forgue.

Christian Johnston 30
Christian Simpson 16
George Simpson 11 (William's twin brother)
Janet Simpson 2

Also there are Janet Johnston 76, William and Christian's mother and a George Cruickshank 74, who is most likely Janet's brother. (There are several farm servants also staying there).

In 1851 William is with the family at West Park Street, Huntly.

Christian Simpson 42
William Simpson 19
Janet Simpson 12
Isabella Cheaper 2 (grand daughter)

They are all shown as being born in Huntly which made it hard to track them down though.

William's mother Christian Johnston dies in 1856 in Huntly.

One question is "What first put you onto this Christian Johnston being William Simpson's mother?"

In 1841 there is a William Simpson aged 9 living in Granay St Huntly in the household of Anne Farquhar and he would appear to be the William missing from New Mill, Forgue (which I take to be New Mill of Pitfancy).

Information I have received from another branch of the family with whom, with Anne's help, I am now in touch suggests the following about William's father, another William.

William Simpson was born on 3rd January, 1789 at Forgue. He married Christian Johnston on 14th August, 1825 at Forgue his occupation at that time is farm overseer at a farm at Auchaber. They had 4 children: Christian (1825), William (1831), George (1831) and James (1835). William died on 6th October, 1876 at the age of 87 at Auchaber, Forgue,.

I haven't yet found out the source of these dates but, in conjunction with your post, they do produce a couple of questions.

In 1841 Christian Johnson appears to be using her maiden name but in 1851 she reverts to Simpson. If the marriage date of 14th August 1825 is correct and the first child Christian was born in 1825, then 1) she was pregnant when she was married (not unsusual I realise), 2) she was 15 when she conceived and 3) her husband was 36 (which surely even in those days was unusual). By 1841 she appears to be separated from William who appears to be living as a farmer in Aucharnie with his sister Helen. They are still there in 1851 by which time Christian Johnston has reverted to her married name. There seems to me something odd about all this but I can't put my finger on it.

Also my "new" relations record a son James born 1835. I think this may be a mistranscription for Janet whom you have as a 2 year old at New Mill Forgue in 1841 and a 12 year old at Huntly in 1851 (although the census lists her as 17 in 1851).

The age discrepancies also disorient me somewhat - for example William aged 9 having an 11 year old twin - but I suppose that is just the way things were in the early days of census taking.

Thanks for reading me.

Regards

Ian
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[SarahND]

One of my all-time favorites, for teamwork and perseverance. Read through from the beginning and enjoy!


Talking Scot is 10 years old!
To celebrate we are “bumping” selected older posts - posts we enjoyed , posts with knotty puzzles, posts which made us laugh, posts which brought a tear to our eye and posts where the problem solving skills of Talking Scot members won the day. Why not join us in our celebrations by “birthday bumping” some of your favourite posts? Just post a reply to the end of any of your favourite posts and remember to mention in your reply it is a “Birthday Bumped” post!
=D> =D>

“Birthday bumps” or “dumps” are a tradition in Scotland, especially in school playgrounds, where the birthday boy or girl was pursued in order to be given “dumps” or “bumps” - usually a series of bumps on the behind with a knee, corresponding to the number of years the birthday person had now reached (and sometimes an extra one for luck!). For more info about Scottish birthday dumps or bumps, see
http://www.scotslanguage.com/word/Apr-2 ... day_custom_

[nelmit]

You beat me to it Sarah!!

It took me a while to find - I could remember Nellie and Aberdeen - and when I did you had already 'bumped it'.

To me this is what Team TS is all about.

Happy 10th birthday TS.

Awra best,
Annette

[SarahND]

It took me a while to find - I could remember Nellie and Aberdeen - and when I did you had already 'bumped it'.

I had advance notice of the "bumping" so has it already waiting in the background for the right moment It was a brilliant series of discoveries, dead ends, new discoveries... finally leading to the correct person.

[Russell]

And despite a conclusion having been reached it is a fascinating example of how logic, determination, patience, perseverance, persistence, the application of varied mind sets to a problem can not only overcome a brick wall situation, but lead to totally new and unexpected discoveries. The whole enterprise is as relevant today to a shared approach to problems as it was then.
The moral in this post is 'Do not make your mind up that you have the correct ancestors until you have the corroborative evidence' Keep an open mind for all possible options and enjoy the journey the searches will take you on

Russell